


Neutral Ground

by dogheaven



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M, Trans Character, Trans Male Character
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-13
Updated: 2018-08-28
Packaged: 2019-06-09 17:58:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,714
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15273123
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dogheaven/pseuds/dogheaven
Summary: Kravitz is visiting his mother and her wife at their lakeside home. He meets a very pretty and very gay man running the local kitschy magic shop, and maybe develops a little crush.





	1. le uno

**Author's Note:**

> i really don't intend for this to be A Thing (ie i don't have ideas for more chapters or anything). I went up to the mountains a few weeks ago with my family and wanted to write about it!! except its not about me its about the grim reaper.

“Kravitz, dear, why don’t you go into town today?” 

Kravitz blinked, sucked in a breath, and groaned, his face digging deeper into the pillow that smelled nothing like home. The sudden intrusion and  _ burst  _ of light from the midmorning sun stung his eyelids. He had been planning on staying asleep until  _ at least  _ noon, but it seemed like his mother had other plans. 

Raven stepped back from the window she’d just opened, waving her hand around the room as if dispelling dust from a long-unused dungeon rather than the loft room of a lakehouse -- never mind the room was brand new and only just starting to be used. 

She did eye the mess on his floor disdainfully, though -- the pile of clothes, his laptop, a sheath of papers now scattered out of their folder. Kravitz watched her judge his pigstye for a moment before responding to her question:

“No, thank you.” 

Raven sighed heavily and lowered herself down at the edge of his mattress, pulling the duvet off his shoulders and head. “Dear, you’ve been up here with us for, what, three days now? You can’t simply hole yourself up in your room like you’re at home. Go into town, yeah? Or come down to the lake with us?” 

Kravitz rolled over onto his back, fixing his twisted shirt collar and rubbing the dried spittle away from his lips. He avoided his mother’s concerned eyes, guilt pulling at his belly. 

It was true, unfortunately, that since he’d been up at his mother’s lakehouse home (well, her  _ permanent  _ home now that she and Istus had retired), he’d done nothing but sleep in late and work till the early hours of the morning. His mother and her wife had been begging him to go into town with them or down to the lake in their pontoon boat, but he’d been brushing them off this whole time, feigning he needed to work on something or he was too tired. He decided that maybe today would be the day he picked his pitiful ass up and did something. He wasn't too fond of the lake, so. That left one option. 

Kravitz sat up, stretching. Raven raised an eyebrow at him. 

“I-- I’m sorry, mother. I think I’ll go into town today? And get you that fudge from the place we’d go to when I was little?” 

His mom’s eyes lit up at that and she grinned. “Perfect! You know Istus doesn’t much like chocolate? We can eat it just the two of us like when you were little and get stomach aches. Good times, yeah?”

He snorted at that, and Raven got up to leave, satisfied.  “We made breakfast down in the kitchen but we're going down to the water. We’ll see you in a few hours, then?” 

“Yes. Thank you.” 

***

For as long as he could remember, Kravitz had come up to the lake with his mother -- and then, later, with her girlfriend (and even later, wife) -- over summer break. They’d rent a cabin and spend a week or two up there, hiking and boating and going into the little town to sightsee and eat fudge. 

It was only a few years ago that Raven had gotten married and simultaneously retired, warranting the move to a brand-new home up in the mountains, living permanently at the lake. Kravitz had been old enough to be living on his own by then, and it was only this week he found it in himself to finally pack up his shit and go visit his mom. It was the very least he could do for her, especially after her paying for his transition and letting him get away with bi-weekly calls for the longest time.

Kravitz didn’t remember much since his last visit here when he was in his late teens, but the small, colorful buildings with high roofs rang nostalgic, along with the narrow streets he almost had trouble navigating. He looked around for maybe a Starbucks or little place to sit for a while -- Raven  _ had  _ said she’d see him in a few hours and he’d maybe killed only about fifteen minutes so far. 

He drove hunched over his steering wheel, trying to read the signs on the shops and deciphering what the hell “Santa’s Candlenights Shoppe and Co.” was. 

He almost drove right past it, but there was a little, hole-in-the-wall shop that looked older than most of the other buildings surrounding it. Its windows looked to be painted over black, but the rows of plants on the ground in colorful pots on the sidewalk didn’t make it seem like the place was out of business. Neither did the fairy lights that hung loosely from the overhanging roof, illuminating the worn-paint sign that named of the shop in the window --  _ Taako & Merle’s Magic n’ Healing.  _

The flag over the door was what really caught his eye, though -- rainbow with gold embroidery. And, well. If a gay man sees a lone rainbow flag in a remote mountain city, you can’t much blame him for wanting to see what the deal was, could you?

The bell over the dingy little door sounded Kravitz’s arrival as he pushed his way inside the little shop. It was dark -- very dark, he blinked hard to get his eyes acclimated to the view that was a stark contrast to the bright sunlight outside -- and subsequently started coughing at the thick haze of incense that shrouded the little room in a heavy veil. 

“Hello, sir!” It took Kravitz a moment to pinpoint the voice in the room, and then he did -- a little boy, no older than eleven, it seemed -- sat behind the counter of the shop, a heavy book resting next to the cash register as he pored over it. He stood when Kravitz entered the shop, eager hands pulling his glasses on as he put his hands on the counter, his head barely clearing the top. “Can I help you with anything today?” 

“I -- I’m just looking.” Kravitz tried to give his warmest smile and the boy gave a little nod in acceptance before climbing back in his chair. 

Kravitz glanced at the room around him. It was small, very small, with one central chamber that was chock-full of shelves filled with trinkets and kitschy “magic” toys and joke gifts. He ran his finger along the thick red curtain that lined all the walls of the shop, collecting dust that he wiped off on his slacks. 

The back half of the room was separated from the main side by three glass cases, housing various gems and jewlery and covered on top with half-melted candles that spilled dried wax directly onto the glass. From the fact that there were mountains of the stuff, Kravitz had to assume they’d been burning candles there a while. Little trinkets like magnets and buttons and t-shirts sat on the un-waxed spaces of the case, advertising both the shop and the town. 

Behind the counters was a gramophone sitting on a stool, playing tinny music that sounded familiar to Kravitz but he couldn’t place. Stacks of books littered the floors and the wall-to-wall shelves, some so old that the covers were beginning to flake off and others looking like… recipe books?

Kravitz caught the source of the heady aroma of the room as a little plate in the shape of an open, upside-down umbrella statue sitting on one of the shelves, a cone of incense lazily creating a trail of smoke that, from where Kravitz could see, stained the ceiling in a circle of dark grey.

He made his way over to the counter, picking idly through their shirts. He found a hideous black one with the store’s name emblazoned in bright pink, surrounded by brightly-colored gaudy flames and sparks:  _ Taako & Merle’s Magic n’ Healing.  _ The silly-looking doodles and lightning bolts begged Kravitz to wonder if the kid behind the counter helped design them.

He pursed his lips in an attempt to hide a smile, picturing his ever-poised mother in this. She’d wear it, of course, if he got it for her. After a moment of thought, he dug through and pulled out an identical one -- might as well get one for Istus, too. 

He put the shirts near the cash register and smiled at the little boy, who seemed genuinely surprised to be getting a sale. He turned to his right, facing a doorway Kravitz hadn’t noticed before. “Mister Taako! There’s someone who wants to buy something!” 

He looked apologetically back at Kravitz. “Sorry, sir, I’m not allowed to use the register ‘till I’m twelve.” 

Kravitz opened his mouth to reply but the bead curtain that covered the door to what he presumed was a storage room opened and out walked a man, maybe a little younger than Kravitz’s twenty-five years, with long bleached hair tied up in a bun and critical eyes lined with gold eyeliner. He was-- well, with how  _ pretty  _ he was, Kravitz desperately hoped he was the one behind the flag outside. He wore a baggy Kenny Chesney t-shirt tucked into a pair of leggings splattered in paint, and wiped something on his thighs as he walked into the room. He ruffled the little boy’s hair. 

He eyed Kravitz over once, one manicured eyebrow quirking briefly before he smiled a little. Kravitz fought the urge to look down at himself and make sure he looked presentable, insteading deigning to smooth his hands along his thighs, pulling his wallet out of his pocket. 

“Hi, I’d like to -- uh, the, uh shirts. Please.” 

The man’s -- Taako’s -- little smile grew into a full-on smirk and he traded places with the little boy at the register, clicking a few buttons as he started to ring up Kravitz. “Sure thing! This gonna be all for ya, handsome?” 

Kravitz did a double take at that, blinking hard. Had-- had this random guy just called him  _ ‘handsome’?  _ He cleared his throat after maybe too long a pause between them. “I, uh. Yes, thank you.” 

“Gotcha. Hey, Ango -- go pull out one of those new opals Merle brought us from the back, yeah? It’s in the top box. Bag it for me, bubala.” 

The little boy dashed off, vigor renewed with this task, and the man started clicking at the register. Kravitz passed over his card and their fingers touched on the little plastic and he panicked, wondering briefly if Taako could feel how sweaty his digits were. 

He hummed as he worked at the machine, punching buttons. It took Kravitz a moment to realize he was harmonizing (badly) with the gramophone and maybe found that very, very endearing. Kravitz smiled down at his chipped-nail polished fingers as they tore off the receipt and stuffed it into the paper bag with his new shirts. 

Ango (Angus?) came back, a little velvet bag in his hands. “Here you are, sir!” he chirped. Taako snagged the little bag and dropped it in with Kravitz’s purchase. 

At the start of Kravitz’s protests, Taako simply raised one spindly little hand and smiled. “It’s on the house,” he said. He looked Kravitz over again. “And I’m guessing you’re just visiting Balance Lake?” 

Kravitz blinked at him. “I -- yes, with my mother and her wife.” 

“Mm,” Taako nodded. “Well. If you’re ever in need of some more, uh,  _ supplies,  _ stop by again before you leave, eh?” His wink caught Kravitz off-guard. 

“I-- I will. Thank you.” Now  _ definitely  _ blushing, Kravitz took his bag and left the store, face the same flustered temperature on his rushed drive all the way home. 

It wasn’t until he was back at the cabin that he remembered he’d forgotten the fudge. 


	2. le dos

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> olive garden brings us together via the strings of fate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ohh boy i rlly wasnt planning on continuing this but im gay and i love me a good good human AU. i may be.. a little inebriated writing this so i apologize for weird or shitty writing (jk thats just how i normally Do)

“So, Kravitz -- how does work go?” 

The question, though innocuous, made Kravitz flush with embarrassment. He wiped his (clean) mouth on his napkin, took a sip of water before responding to Istus: “It’s -- well, it puts food on the table.” 

Raven, sitting to his left, scoffed as she took a sip of her wine. She paused before measuring him with a look: “You do realize exactly  _ whose  _ business that is that simply ‘puts food on the table,’ right?” 

Kravitz grinned at her, all teeth. “Not anyone I know  _ anymore.”  _

His new boss, a plucky young woman with a history of running bars and not life insurance agencies was nice, yes, but didn’t run the place with Raven’s heavy hand and level head at  _ quite  _ the same pace. 

And although, yes, working at his mother’s  _ ex- _ life insurance company wasn’t the most  _ fufilling  _ or  _ pleasant  _ job to slave away to as a nine-to-five, he did enjoy the luxury of long vacations and being able to work from home -- and his salary wasn’t much of anything to sneeze at, either. 

Raven scoffed, though her teasing smile betrayed her tone. “You  _ young people  _ and your penchant against authority. Disrespectful, frankly. Kravitz deigned to point out that Ren was closer to  _ his  _ age than hers. 

Still, though, it prickled at the back of his mind to still be in his mother’s footsteps, still being cared for in every sense of the word by her. It  _ was  _ under her management that he even got the job, let alone at the level he was on (Not that he wasn’t qualified  _ per se,  _ it was just rather unusual to be a twenty-five year old at his position, was all). 

Istus chuckled at that, one dainty dark hand covered in henna (his mother’s own recipe) reaching up to cover her mouth. 

Raven, still smiling, reached over and entertwined their fingers, their many heavy rings clinking together lightly across the table. They stared at each other warmly and  _ so full of love  _ that Kravitz had to look away, embarrassed. He took a sip of his own wine, the bitter taste filling his belly with warmth (If he was going to get drunk while third-wheeling at an Olive Garden on vacation, then so be it, goddamit). 

It wasn’t that he didn’t love his mother, because he did. Very, very much. She was warm in every sense of the word and she doted on him at every chance she got -- supported him in every possible way. He had scrapbooks upon scrapbooks filled with pictures of her rooting for him at his piano concerts when he was young, pictures of her dressing him up in his Sunday best for her fancy art shows (dresses back then, ugh), pictures of the two of them grinning outside the Fantastic Sams after Kravitz’s first haircut, of the two of them celebrating birthdays and holidays, and then later, pictures of them at their first Pride, Kravitz still a gangly “butch” teenager in denial, and Raven, wrapped in an oversized rainbow flag with a broad smile, mouth open as if she were speaking to the camera.

They went on and on, and Kravitz knew that his mother’s Facebook was more of the same, the two of them grinning and happy and Raven just  _ so  _ adoring of him as the center of her world. 

It made his heart hurt, and made him feel strangely guilty -- like  _ he  _ should be doing something for her, too. Like he was wasting his time now when he should be making up for the last twenty-five years. 

Kravitz was startled out of his reverie when a hand touched his shoulder from behind. 

He started, jumping just the slightest bit, and saw Raven and Istus exchange a Look from the corner of his eye as he turned. 

And there was that guy from before -- Taako -- standing, grinning, next to… another Taako? Different, with shorter hair and more catlike eyes with tattoos crawling up their exposed arms, but very Taako-like in visage. 

Kravitz blinked a few times but there  _ remained  _ two of them, so he smiled a little awkwardly. “Uh, hello.” 

The one on the right, wearing some elaborate embroidered suit jacket over a flowy tank top and terribly high-waisted mom jeans, grinned even harder at him if it were possible. Kravitz noticed a little gap between his front teeth and was distracted for a moment. “Hey there, thug. Fancy seeing you here.” 

Kravitz blinked back up at him and gave a little weak smile. “I, uh, yeah. Well, I mean, I’m still visiting my mother.” 

The other twin snorted and covered their mouth, shaking their head in (embarrassment?), and Kravitz most definitely did start to smell the thick perfume of wine surrounding them, which explained the big grins and sort of hazy aura. 

“Natch,” Taako said, waving a dainty bracelet-clad hand at his mothers in greeting with a serene smile. 

Kravitz inwardly cringed, but his mothers took it in stride, waving back in the same little flirty manner as him. 

“So, like, listen,” Taako said, leaning closer and nearly choking Kravitz with the alcohol smell as he whispered conspiratorially, “Listen... It’s been, like, two days since I saw you. And I’ve been thinking. Like, what are you gonna need from my shop? Like,  _ ever again?” _

“Uh..?”

“ _ Exactly.  _ But I wanna, like, see you again. And I wasn’t planning on seeing you in a fuckin’ Olive Garden, but I think it’s maybe fate tellin’ me something. So can I maybe have your number?” 

Sort of dumbstruck, Kravitz blinked at this crazy drunk dude but accepted the clicker pen produced seemingly out of nowhere, scribbling his number on a paper napkin before the man snatched it away and winked. “I’ll, uh, text’ya when I’m sober. Have a lovely night!” 

The last part was directed at the two women, and Istus laughed a little as Taako left, his shoulder escaping the confines of his suit jacket as he flounced off after his twin. Kravitz watched them go as a waitress refilled their waters, brought new breadsticks. He wracked his brain, trying to replay what the fuck just happened as a blush creeped its way up his neck and to his ears. He was glad for the reprise the waitress brought as he gathered his thoughts, his nose still thick with that sickly sweet odor. 

There was a long beat in which they all waited for the waitress to leave after a series of “thank you”s and then Raven turned to Kravitz with a rare grin, a dimple denting one cheek and her eyes crinkling merily with those familiar wrinkles. 

“Kravitz, dear, I  _ do  _ think you forgot to introduce us!” 

“He seemed like a lovely young man,” Istus added, glancing at her wife with those pale gray, mischevious eyes. Kravitz cleared his throat unnecessarily, blinking hard at the tablecloth in front of him.

“It’s, uh. He, uh, he ran the shop that I got your shirts from,” was all Kravitz could muster, taking a deep drink from his water. Gods, it was getting kinda hot in the Olive Garden, wasn’t it?

Raven took his clammy hand in her warm, calloused one, giving him a brief squeeze. “Well,  _ he  _ seemed to have seen a little more meaning in those t-shirts, then. How much did you tip him?” 

Istus laughed at that and Kravitz pulled his hand away to bury his face in his palms. “I didn’t even  _ say  _ anything! He just -- he was  _ like  _ that.” 

He felt her hand against the side of his hair, combing some of his locs behind his ear, careful to avoid the gold rings there. “I don’t see how that’s a problem, Kravitz,” she said, “You’re a handsome young man --  _ anyone  _ would be glad to have you. You turn heads!” 

That only served to embarrass him more and he groaned into his hands. Istus hummed in approval. “You have your mother’s genes, Kravitz. Really.” 

He huffed at that, pulling his hands away from his face as the waiter finally ( _ finally)  _ brought them their food, and the discussion was brought to a halt as the three were served their hot carbs. 

***

Later, up in his loft after he’d driven the three of them home (Raven and Istus had gone  _ well _ above their allowance of one glass each), Kravitz was finishing up some paperwork (slightly buzzed, which made it a bit easier), when his phone chimed from its position on the carpet against the wall.

Kravitz picked it up, half certain of who it would be. 

**_[Unknown number]:_ ** _ hey qt, sorry abt dinner LOL i didn’t mean to interrupt or anything, im just a Liiiitle drunk.  _

**_[Unknown number]:_ ** _ but i do want to c you again before u leave. ;-) if u want.  _

**_[Unknown number]:_ ** _ oh & this is taako btw lol  _

He smiled, warmth swelling in his belly and flooding into his face as he read over the messages. He resisted the urge to shove his face into his pillow and make an undignified noise, instead standing and pacing his room like a grown ass man. It took him a few more minutes of cooling down before he replied: 

**_[Me]:_ ** _ Hi, Taako. Yes, I guessed it was you, haha. I’d love to see you again. I won’t be leaving the lake for quite some time since I’m staying most of the summer, but I’d love to talk some more, maybe have some coffee?  _

**_[Unknown number]:_ ** _ hell yea Hell Yea well there’s this cool ice cream placec down near the water that tourists dont rlly know abt. u busy tmrw? The shops only open till 12:30 :O _

**_[Unknown number]:_ ** _ o fuck i just realized ive been flirting with u for like fifteen minutes now but I Dont even know your name??? Im so sorry  _

**_[Me]:_ ** _ it’s Kravitz, and I’d love to! Can I pick you up at your store around one o’clock?  _

**_[Unknown number]:_ ** _ ohh that’s a pretty name. I’ll c u tomorrow at one then, handsome ;D _

**_[Me]:_ ** _ See you then.  _

Kravitz fell asleep that night after a long battle with his stupidly grinning face not wanting to cooperate and his belly full of wine and pasta, full of the tickly fluttering of butterflies that his stomach acid refused to digest until it was well into the early hours of the morning. 

It was -- well, it had been a long time since Kravitz had  _ liked  _ a man, nevermind  _ actually kinda flirted with one.  _ It was exciting _ ,  _ to say the least. Even if it was just for ice cream (It was  _ just  _ for ice cream, he kept remind himself). 

But maybe it wouldn’t just be for ice cream. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i got some chaps planned out after this but Not 100% Sure How It's Gonna Go. but ratings will definitely change as it goes on lol   
> maybe drop a kudos and a comment?? makes my heart fucking Buzz when i get those notifs on my phone <3<3 
> 
> ily have a good night

**Author's Note:**

> opals are representation of desire/passion and "[intensify] emotional states and [release] inhibitions. It can also act as an emotional stabilizer." https://www.jewelsforme.com/opal-meaning i imagine merle spouts this shit all day like the emotional and healing properties of rocks and taako pretends not to care but he's 100% into that and also likes to flirt in really weird ways, so. he gives a rock to this hot guy at his store. kravtiz has no idea why he got a free rock but whatever he'll put it on his desk or something.
> 
> thank you for reading!! comments and kudos go a long way. come visit my art blog mayhaps? lets talk about trans kravitz <3 http://marzipan-s.tumblr.com


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